Widespread Panic Jam Into the Sunset at Rothbury

Widespread Panic's sunset performance — the first of two sets the group played Friday at Rothbury — had the feel of a spring break beach party. Dozens of yellow balls tagged with smiling faces bounced like popped corn on the throng of onlookers — an inordinate amount of whom were sporting the same fuzzy, Dr.Seuss-style hats worn by dating guru Mystery on VH1's The Pickup Artist. But despite the carnival-esque atmosphere, the band members looked more like laid-back college professors (aside from Dave Schools, who, despite his name, resembled a grizzly bear wrestling a bass guitar) as they stretched out on instrumental marathons (or songs that became them) like "North."

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Song Stories

“Time to Pretend”

MGMT | 2008

Listening to MGMT’s breakthrough song, one might interpret it as being about the excesses of rock stardom, but it’s actually about the duo’s pet praying mantis. Ben Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden told Rolling Stone they got the idea from the insect's jerky movements. The mantis died, but the two bandmates kept the egg sack and allowed the hundreds of eggs to hatch. “We tried to name them all, but they died after a day,” said Goldwasser, with VanWyngarden chiming in, “But the praying mantis dance inspired us.”

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